POLAND — RSU 16 officials and representatives from Mechanic Falls, Minot and Poland town budget committees Monday discussed setting Nov. 8, election day, as the date for a referendum vote on a school budget but no final decision was made. The vote will be the district’s fourth attempt to pass a school budget.

The RSU 16 School Committee will meet in a week to decide what to do with the budget. Voters rejected a $17.8 million proposal on Sept. 13 by a 12-vote margin.

Superintendent Dennis Duquette said that he would recommend no further reduction in the budget for the school year that is already a month old.

Duquette noted that the budget, as crafted, left little wiggle room and is already under pressure due to the unanticipated enrollment of a student needing special out-of-district placement, the need to purchase $15,000 in fuel oil that hadn’t been budgeted for and the fact that the budget had figured on the replacement of three experienced teachers, due to retirement, with younger teachers making about $20,000 a piece less.

“But tell me what to do and I’ll do it,” Duquette said.

Minot Budget Committee member Colleen Quint agreed that budget reduction options were limited.

“I don’t think it will work if you go back with the same budget,” Quint said.

“I think it would make people real mad to try the same thing again,” School Committee member Missy Hodgkin said.

School Committee member Tina Love suggested that if there was to be any reduction, it should be in funds set aside for pay raises.

“I don’t want to have a kid lose a field trip so a teacher or administrator could receive a raise,” Love said.

In trying to explain voter displeasure shown in the rejection of the three budgets, School Committee member Scott Tiner credited fear of the apparent $900,000 funding gap that has been projected for next year.

Duquette and School Committee Chairman Mary Ella Jones agreed that projections were scary, but pointed to a number of possible ways to minimize the increase.

Duquette said that changes in health insurance providers and plans are real possibilities. He also noted that the district is looking into reconfiguring the use of its schools, possibly grouping all kindergarten through grade two students in one school, grades 3 and 4 in another and grades 5 and 6 in the third, as a way to save on resources.

School Committee members appeared divided on whether to propose the same budget or one that calls for reduced spending and agreed to meet again next Monday, Oct. 3, to decide a course.

Editor’s note: Article was edited to reflect that the date of the vote was not set at the meeting.